I Know I'm Not Alone
by BritNP
Summary: Hermione Granger moves to Lima, Ohio where she meets and befriends Quinn Fabray.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Takes place after the end of season two of Glee.**

** I do no own Glee, HP, or any of the characters.**

* * *

Quinn muttered to herself, throwing her books into her locker and slamming it shut. She whipped around, just in time to see the new girl take a slushie to the face. The girl stood, paralyzed. From the fear or the shock of the cold, Quinn couldn't tell. Her brown eyes were wide as she looked down at the blue mess that covered her face, neck, and chest. It was seeping into her clothing, and it was freezing.

Everyone in the hall was staring by now, and it was obvious that the new girl was beyond embarrassed. Karofsky was gone by now, his booming laugh echoing through the hall after him. The brunette looked around at the faces that were taking her in, watching her, waiting for her to move. She swallowed hard and blinked back tears as she took off. Quinn heaved a sigh and chased after her.

She found her in the bathroom, leaning over the sink and splashing hot water onto her face. She looked over at Quinn as she entered the room. Quinn only stared, unable to find words. The new girl only stared back for a few moments, before returning to cleaning her face. Quinn grabbed some paper towels and held them out for the girl, who took them and dried her face.

"Why are you helping me?" The girl asked.

"I've been in that situation. It sucks," Quinn said simply. The girl just nodded and tossed the paper towels into a trash bin. She looked down at her shirt, assessing the damage. She sighed and looked back up at Quinn.

"I'm Hermione Granger. You?"

"Quinn. Quinn Fabray. You have an accent. Are you from Europe?"

"London," The girl said softly. "I've only just transferred."

"I see. Do you have something you can change into?" Hermione looked down at her shirt again and only shook her head. Quinn grabbed her hand and led her from the bathroom. She led her down the halls, ignoring the strange looks she was getting. She couldn't care less right now. She knew what it was like to get slushied, knew what it was like to be on the bottom.

Quinn pulled Hermione into the girls' locker room and sat her down on a bench near some lockers. Hermione watched quietly, curious as Quinn spun a strange dial to the right, then the left, then the right again before she tugged it open. Hermione had seen lockers like these in muggle schools, but she had never actually used one. She didn't even know where her locker was. She hadn't gone to look for it yet. It was just another thing for her to worry about, and right now, she just didn't care. The day had gone so horribly already.

"I think this would fit you," Quinn said, holding out a shirt to Hermione. Hermione nodded and took it from her. She stood and tugged off her own shirt. Quinn tried not to make it obvious that she was looking. "Did the slushie soak through to your bra?"

"A little bit, but it's bearable." Hermione looked around and spotted the showers. "I think I should probably wash my hair."

"Oh, of course. Here," Quinn reached into her locker and pulled out shampoo and conditioner. "These probably aren't the right type for your hair, but they're better than nothing."

"Thanks." Hermione said, taking the bottles from Quinn. Hermione whirled and walked off to the showers, grabbing a towel along the way. Quinn peered from around the lockers and watched as Hermione unclasped her bra and laid it aside. She absently licked at her lips. Then Hermione was wriggling out of her jeans, and Quinn saw that her candy striped panties matched her bra. She bit her lip as Hermione dropped her panties and tossed them over with her bra. She stepped into the shower and turned it on. Quinn stepped back and rested her head against the lockers. She closed her eyes and let out a shaky breath.

Hermione quickly washed and conditioned her hair, shutting off the water and drying herself off. She glanced over to where Quinn was, but from here, she couldn't see her. _Which__is__such__a__shame,__because__she__'__s__so__pretty_, Hermione thought to herself. She shook her head, wondering where that thought had come from. She pulled on her underwear and slid into her jeans. She tugged Quinn's shirt over her torso and grabbed the bottles, walking back to where Quinn was sitting. "What do you think?"

"It looks good on you. In fact, I think it looks better on you." Quinn was surprised by the words as soon as they left her mouth. What was she saying?

"Thanks," Hermione blushed. "I'll get it back to you tomorrow."

"No, don't bother. You should keep it. It really does look better on you," Quinn gave her a reassuring smile.

"Do you think… Can I eat lunch with you?" Hermione asked.

"Of course," Quinn smiled and took the bottles, standing and putting them into her locker. She turned and grabbed Quinn's hand, leading her out of the locker room. "I'll introduce you to some friends of mine. I think you'll like them."

Quinn looked back at Hermione, who just nodded and smiled. Those green eyes that were staring into her own had rendered her speechless, and she had a feeling that she'd never quite get over how beautiful Quinn Fabray was. Maybe living in Lima wouldn't be so bad after all.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I do not own Glee, HP, or any of the characters.**

* * *

Hermione twisted the combination lock around again, trying to get the stupid locker open. She stamped her feet in frustration when it didn't budge as she tried to tug it open. She banged her fist on the locker and rested her head against it. Stupid muggle world. If they only had magic, everything would be so much simpler.

"You still can't get it open?" Hermione turned to see Quinn grinning at her.

"No, stupid thing." Hermione sighed. Quinn laughed and nudged Hermione out of the way so that she could open it for her. She spun the lock, tugged it open, and slid out of the way for Hermione. Hermione just stared at her.

"I don't get it. Didn't you have lockers at your old school?" Quinn asked. Hermione's breath caught in her throat as she struggled for an answer. She'd never really thought about how she was going to explain the fact that she'd gone to a wizarding school in the middle of nowhere. No, they'd think her insane.

"We lived at the school. We kept our books in our rooms," Hermione answered.

"Oh, so you went to a boarding school," Quinn said. She could see that, Hermione sitting around with other girls in her dorm, laughing and talking. She wondered if they made popcorn and sat around watching movies together and talked about boys. She'd never really had friends like that before. Wait.

"Was it all girls?"

"Oh, no, boys and girls." Quinn's eyebrows shot up and she got a grin on her face. "What?"

"Did you ever sneak into the boys' dorms?" Quinn asked, waggling her eyebrows.

"Oh, god, no." Hermione rolled her eyes and shut her locker. They two girls began walking down the hall, towards their English class.

"Why not?"

"Well, I was more of what most would call a goody-two-shoe. I'm not really one to break rules," Hermione sighed.

"Noted." Quinn smiled.

They had lucked out and gotten a few classes together. Quinn was noticing that Hermione was actually a pretty diligent student, and Hermione was noticing that Quinn was actually quite popular. The only real thing that they could find in common at this point was the fact that they both seemed to be perfectionists. Yet, there was just something that drew them together, and neither of them could quite put their finger on it.

"Hermione," Quinn whispered, leaning over to the brunette. The name was so foreign, so strange. She loved the taste of it as it rolled over her tongue.

"What?" Hermione asked, not looking up from her notes.

"Do you want to go see a movie tonight?" Hermione looked up in surprise. She had lived in the muggle world long enough to know what movies were. Her parents had taken her to several when she was younger. She hadn't been to one in years.

"Sure," Hermione whispered back.

"Okay. I'll text you the details later, then." Quinn turned back to her own notes. Hermione stared in confusion. Text? Oh, right. The cell phone. She turned back to her notes. She really should pay a little more attention. She felt so out of place. In the wizarding world, she knew ___everything_. Here, she felt so lost in it all. And that creep, Karofsky… what was his deal, anyway? She hadn't even ___done_ anything to him. She had half a mind to pull out her wand and jinx him. But that wouldn't be a smart move. Maybe one of these days…

The bell rang and Hermione hurried to finish the sentence she was writing. She shoved her books into her bag. She looked over at Quinn, who just smiled at her and said, "Ready to go?"

"What do you mean?"

"You have to go to your locker, right?" Quinn asked.

"Well, yes."

"You have a bus to catch, and if I don't help you, you're never going to get your locker open and then you'll miss your bus," Quinn laughed. Hermione only grinned and followed Quinn out of the classroom. She couldn't argue. She'd probably spend the next hour trying to get that stupid locker open if she tried.

"Quinn, can I ask you something?" Hermione asked.

"Didn't you just?" Quinn asked, grinning.

"Well, yes, I suppose I did. I… I've noticed that you aren't particularly nice to other people. But I've never really given you reason enough to be nice to me. Why are you so nice to me?" Hermione asked. Quinn looked in surprise at Hermione and bit her lip, not quite sure what to say. She just shrugged.

"I don't know. I like you." Quinn turned and kept walking the direction of Hermione's locker. Hermione just stared after her before realizing that she was supposed to be following. She shook her head and sighed. This is why she wasn't typically friends with girls. Boys were just so much easier to understand.

Quinn opened Hermione's locker and stepped aside, watching as Hermione debated over which books to take home and crammed them into her bag. Hermione shut her locker and turned back to Quinn, smiling.

"Thank you for helping me."

"No problem. But I have to get to rehearsal for Glee club. I'll text you later?" Quinn asked as they both started walking.

"Sure. I'll see you tonight," Hermione smiled and headed in the direction of the buses. Quinn watched Hermione go, wondering just what she was doing. Hermione was right. She wasn't normally nice to people, but she had taken Hermione under her wing the moment she met her. What was it about the brunette that she liked so much? She obviously had a nice body, but that wasn't all Quinn liked. It couldn't be. She wouldn't be nice to somebody just because she liked how pretty they were. If that were the case, she just might be nice to Rachel Berry. While Hermione and Rachel shared that know-it-all attitude and both seemed overly ambitious, there was something that set them apart.

Quinn sighed and turned, walking towards the choir room. In time, she would figure it all out. For now, she was just going to do her best to be Hermione Granger's friend.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I do not own Glee, HP, or any of the characters.**

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"Up or down? Crookshanks, what do you think?" Hermione asked, turning to the orange cat that lay at the end of her bed, lazily licking at his paw. She bit her lip. She was talking to her ___cat_. Had she gone mad? She looked nervously at Crookshanks, almost afraid that he'd jump up and answer her thoughts. She turned back to her mirror and released her hair, letting it fall in waves over her shoulders. She heard a soft mew from behind her and turned to smile at Crookshanks. "Down it is, then."

"Hermione?" There was a soft knock on the door and then her mother was poking her head in.

"Yes, Mum?"

"Your friend is here. She's waiting downstairs on the couch." Hermione nodded and gave a quick glance to Crookshanks, taking a deep breath. What had her so nervous? She'd had plenty of friends at Hogwarts. Sort of. Luna was probably her closest girl friend. The thought made her chuckle a little. Luna was sweet, but she was stranger than most girls. Quinn was nothing like Luna. Quinn made her nervous, actually.

"Ready to go?" Quinn asked, standing up.

"Yes." Hermione smiled, taking in Quinn's appearance. A dress, of course. It was a violet v-neck dress with sleeves that covered her shoulders. It had a couple of buttons down the center and the frilly hem stopped just above Quinn's knees, giving Hermione a full view of Quinn's gorgeous legs. She wore a cropped denim jacket over the dress and clutched at a small denim handbag. Her hair was down, curled out away from her face. Why did she have to be so beautiful?

"Hermione? Are you okay?" Quinn asked in a tone that suggested that she had asked the question a few times before.

"Huh? Uh, yeah." Hermione blushed. Quinn smirked as Hermione gave her mother a quick goodbye and rushed the both of them out of the house.

"Distracted?" Quinn asked.

"I, well, yes. Something I forgot about earlier and just remembered," Hermione said quickly, trying to avoid the subject at hand. "What are we going to see again?"

"Did you forget already?" Quinn laughed. "___Don____'____t____Be____Afraid____of____the____Dark_. It's supposed to be good." Quinn shrugged, opening the passenger door for Hermione.

"Thank you," Hermione said, climbing in.

Quinn shut the door and hurried around to the driver's side, climbing in. Did she really just open and close the door for Hermione? What was with her? This wasn't a date, this was just two friends going to see a movie. She fastened her seatbelt and started the car. The ride to the theater was quiet. The girls made small talk, which mostly consisted of Quinn telling Hermione about how horribly glee practice had gone that afternoon.

Quinn had already bought the tickets, Hermione found out. So the two girls just went on in to the concessions. Quinn turned to Hermione and asked, "What should we get? Do you want a drink and popcorn, or would you rather have a drink and candy, or would you want both popcorn and candy?"

"Quinn, I have money, you know." Hermione told her.

"Shut up. What do you want?" Quinn asked. Hermione raised her eyebrows and folded her arms across her chest, grinning.

"What?" Quinn asked, but the only response she got in return was Hermione point to her mouth and shaking her head.

"Quit being stubborn and tell me what you want," Quinn laughed and gave Hermione a light shove. Hermione giggled and looked up at the menu.

"Why don't we just get drinks and popcorn? Unless you want candy."

"Nah," Quinn shook her head. "I don't eat much candy. Drinks and popcorn it is. What do you want to drink?"

Hermione, unfamiliar with the different sodas, shrugged and said, "Whatever you're getting." Quinn rolled her eyes and ordered a combo, handing the cashier a card. ___A____credit____card_, Hermione thought to herself. That would certainly make muggle money easier to manage, wouldn't it? Luckily, she'd never had issues with understanding muggle money.

"Here, Mione." Quinn handed Hermione a drink, and Hermione raised an eyebrow at Quinn.

"What?" Quinn asked.

"Mione?"

"I like it. I mean, don't get me wrong, I like your name. I just thought it'd be cute to shorten it a bit. Don't you think Mione sounds cute?" Quinn grabbed up their bag of popcorn and pointed at the end of the counter at napkins.

"I suppose it does," Hermione smiled, grabbing several napkins. She watched Quinn put extra butter over their popcorn, and the two of them walked toward the theater.

"I don't go to the movies often, so when I do go, I let myself indulge," Quinn laughed.

"I haven't been to the movies in years," Hermione commented.

"Really? Why not? Quinn asked.

"Never really had the time," Hermione shrugged. She pulled open the door to the theater and held it for Quinn, who thanked her. They walked up the ramp and looked around the theater for seats. "Don't even ask me."

Quinn giggled and pointed to some seats near the top, "Alright, there." Hermione followed Quinn to the top and took the seat next to her. They said little as they got situated and then looked up at the screen, watching the little trivial facts that came up.

"You don't get scared easy, do you?" Quinn asked, finally turning to Hermione.

"No, not at all," Hermione answered, looking at Quinn.

The lights dimmed a bit, and the theater fell quiet as the previews began. Hermione and Quinn both turned their attention to the screen. Finally through the previews, the lights completely dimmed and the theater was dark. Excited whispers filled the theater as friends turned to each other in anticipation. Quinn smiled over at Hermione, who grinned back.

Halfway through the movie, the popcorn was three fourths of the way gone. Quinn reached in to grab more just as Hermione did, and their fingers brushed up against each other, immediately making Hermione blush and pull back. Quinn swallowed hard, forcing a weak smile as she bit into a couple of kernels of popcorn. This was just plain ___ridiculous_. Girls didn't freak out when their hands touched. Quinn bit the inside of her cheek. ___Straight____girls_ didn't freak out over something like that. Was it possible that she, Lucy Quinn Fabray, could be gay? No, not gay. She knew that she had a definite interest in men. But women? She had always been comfortable enough with admiring how beautiful some were, and she didn't deny that some women had such beautiful bodies. But for the first time in her life, she had met a woman that made her flustered. That gave her butterflies. Hermione Granger gave her ___butterflies_. When was the last time anyone had done that?

Hermione shifted in her seat. Why had that felt so strange? Why did ___she_ feel so nervous? She'd never been nervous in a girl's presence before. Unless you counted Fleur. Being next to Fleur meant you had all the men looking your way, which could be quite unsettling at times, even if you knew they were looking at her and not you. But that was besides the point. The point was ___why____did____Quinn____Fabray____make____her____nervous_? She couldn't deny that she was attracted to Quinn. She had spent the better part of the night trying not to obviously stare at her legs. She'd never been attracted to a girl before. There was just something about Quinn. She became giddy when she thought about her. Quinn's smile melted her heart and brightened her day. She just felt sparks.

When the lights came out, the girls quietly followed the crowd out of the theater. On the way to the car, they discussed different elements of the movie and talked about their favorite parts. Hermione held the theater door open for Quinn, and Quinn opened and closed the passenger door for Hermione. On the drive home, the girls were chatty, talking about anything but how their hands had touched.

"Come in and hang out for a little while," Hermione suggested as Quinn pulled up to her house. Quinn looked at the clock on the radio. It wasn't late at all, and she didn't have anything else to do. Besides, this was a chance to spend a little more time with Hermione outside of school.

"Alright."

Hermione told her mother that she and Quinn would be hanging out up in her room, and the two girls hurried up the stairs. Hermione opened up her door, letting Quinn in before her. She was undecided on whether to leave it open or closed, but it didn't really matter. Her parents bedroom was downstairs. She left it open.

"So this is your room." Quinn stated, looking around. She sat down next to Crookshanks on the bed. He looked her over and then crawled into her lap, purring as she pet him.

"That's Crookshanks. He likes you," Hermione smiled.

"Mm, but he barely knows me," Quinn cooed, looking down at the ball of orange fluff.

"Crookshanks is an excellent judge of character." Hermione pulled out the chair to her desk and sat facing Quinn.

"So who's that?" Quinn asked, pointing to a picture behind Hermione. Hermione turned and looked, smiling. It was a picture of the trio from the summer before last. At the Burrow. Hermione didn't have a clue that she'd be going to need motionless picture, but Mr. Weasley was trying to learn the art of using a muggle camera. She didn't know why she had kept the picture, but she was glad that she had. She picked up the picture and walked over to the bed, sitting down next to Quinn.

"This is Ron and this is Harry," Hermione said, pointing to each of the boys. "They're my two best friends."

"Really? I kind of figured you'd have girls as best friends," Quinn said, looking over the picture.

"Nah," Hermione shrugged. "I met them on the train, on the way to the school. I've been best friends with them since."

"So they're back in…?"

"London."

"Do you still talk to them? Since you've moved?" Quinn asked.

"Yes. We write."

"What, like email?"

"Letters."

Quinn snorted and kicked her shoes off. She slid up to the head of the bed, cradling Crookshanks in her arms. Hermione kicked her shoes off and turned, sitting cross-legged. Quinn looked at Hermione for a moment and then said, "You really write letters? Like, with pen and paper?"

"We do." Hermione nodded.

"That's so weird. I've never met anyone my age who writes letters. Well, unless you count Brittany writing letters to 'Santa Claus'." Quinn grinned.

"Santa? Isn't Brittany seventeen?" Hermione asked, shocked.

"Yeah. You'll find that Brittany is still very childlike in some ways. She's not the brightest person out there. But she never means any harm, and she's really sweet."

"She is really nice. I like her." Hermione said, crawling up to the head of the bed and laying on a pillow, looking up at Quinn, who was sitting with her back against the headboard.

"Who else do you like?" Quinn asked, looking down at Hermione.

"Well, Finn seems nice, although I don't think he's too bright. But how do you put up with Rachel? She's so annoying!" Hermione looked up at Quinn questioningly, who just giggled.

"Rachel and I don't have the best history. We've had this ongoing battle for Finn for a couple of years. But I give up on him. She can have him." Quinn let her eyes roam over the room, absently petting Crookshanks. She slid down and laid next to Hermione, turning to face her. "Have you ever had any boyfriends?"

Hermione shook her head. "There was a boy named Viktor. I liked him, but he was from another school, so it was a long distance thing. I never considered him my boyfriend, though. Just a friend. I did like Ron, too. He was with another girl, though."

"You never liked Harry?" Quinn asked.

"Nah. Harry is one of my best friends. He's attractive, but I've never seen him as anything but a friend. Have you had any boyfriends other than Finn?" Hermione asked, looking at Quinn.

"I cheated on Finn with Puck. It was a one time thing, but I ended up getting pregnant. One of the biggest mistakes I ever made, I think." Quinn sighed. She looked into Hermione's eyes. "I didn't tell Finn, though. I let him think that the baby was his. At some point, people found out that the baby was Puck's and not Finn's. Rachel told Finn. So Finn broke up with me. I can't blame him. It was an awful thing for me to do. Anyway, during the next school year, I started dating this new kid, Sam. And then I cheated on him with Finn. After that came out, Finn and I were together officially. He broke up with me when he realized he wanted Rachel more. I haven't been with anyone since."

"Wow. So what happened to the baby?" Hermione asked.

"I gave her up for adoption. I wasn't ready to raise a child. I'm still a child myself, and I obviously wasn't mature enough to handle it. I want her to have a better life, with parents who can take care of her, you know?"

"It was probably for the best."

"I don't know why I'm telling you all of this. I guess I've never really had someone to talk to about it," Quinn sighed, resting her head on her arm. "Do you think I'm a bad person, Mione?"

"No," Hermione answered, shaking her head. "I think people make mistakes. It doesn't mean you're a bad person. It just means you had poor judgment. Now, if you keep repeating the mistakes, then there's a problem."

"I cheated on both of my boyfriends," Quinn pointed out.

"Poor judgment. You probably didn't mean to the first time, but the second time was intentional, wasn't it?" Hermione asked.

"I thought about it. I considered it. I did decide to end it, but by that time, Sam broke up with me for Santana."

"Finn was your first love. There's always going to be something there."

"I suppose so."

"Do you think you would cheat again?" Hermione asked.

"No. No, I've learned my lesson. It never ends well."

"Good. Do you think you'll have a boyfriend this year?" Hermione asked.

"I don't know," Quinn shrugged. "I guess we'll see how it plays out. I don't think I'm going to actively seek one, though."

"Don't go looking for love. It'll find you," Hermione yawned.

"So cliché." Quinn laughed, closing her eyes.

"Isn't it?" Hermione closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. The two lay there in a comfortable silence, just enjoying each other's presence, mulling over the conversation in their minds. They had learned quite a bit about each other, and a lot of it had been useful information. Quinn found herself wondering if Hermione would ever even consider dating Quinn, knowing what she knew now. Quinn hadn't been faithful to her previous boyfriends. Could Hermione ever believe that Quinn would be faithful to her? She opened her eyes, looking over Hermione's face. She looked so peaceful, just laying there. Quinn listened to Hermione's breathing, watching her chest move with each breath she took. She could never be unfaithful to someone so sweet, so pure.

Quinn bit her lip. When had it gone from her questioning her sexuality to whether or not Hermione would ever be hers? That answered her first question, didn't it? Even if she wasn't really into women, she was at least curious. There was only one way to find out, wasn't there? She didn't even know if Hermione went that way. What if Hermione didn't even like girls? What if she didn't like Quinn? Although, if the way Hermione had acted tonight had been any indication… But then, Hermione had never had any real girl friends. Maybe she was just nervous because of that.

"Mione?" Quinn's voice was quiet. Hermione didn't open her eyes. "Mione?" she asked a little louder. Hermione didn't stir. Quinn bit her lip. She'd have to ask her another time. She wondered if she should go. Hermione didn't invite her to stay over, after all. But would Hermione mind if she woke up with Quinn there? She could just pass it off like she'd fallen asleep. Yes, she'd do that. She didn't want to leave.

She closed her eyes, letting the sound of Hermione's breathing slowly lull her to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: ****I'm so sorry. I was hoping to get a chapter up before Christmas, but I've been dealing with a lot of family drama. So I apologize for the lateness.**

* * *

Hermione murmured something as the body pressed against her shifted. She pulled the person closer, not wanting to lose the warmth. She was too comfortable and the other person was moving around to much for her liking. She wanted to tell them to stop moving - _wait_. Her eyes snapped open and she looked down at the person nestled against her. She brushed the soft blonde hair back from Quinn's face and sighed. How on earth had she ended up cuddling with Quinn?

Hermione realized that they must have fallen asleep last night when they were talking. Of course, she had obviously fallen asleep because the last thing she remembered was talking about whether or not Quinn would date this year.

She didn't want to wake the sleeping girl, who was actually snoring a little. Hermione grinned, trying to keep herself from giggling. It was actually kind of cute. She closed her eyes. Yeah, she had it bad for Quinn Fabray. And here was Quinn, all snuggled up to her. She decided that she wasn't going to move. She'd just lay here and enjoy it for as long as she could. Should she pretend she's asleep when Quinn wakes up? She looked back down at Quinn to find Quinn's green eyes looking back at her. _Too late_.

"Hey." Hermione said quietly. _Hey? Seriously?_

"Hi." Quinn answered, pulling back away from Hermione. Not that she didn't want to be there, but she was kind of embarrassed. She had forgotten about her habit of cuddling when she was sleeping. Great time to forget.

"Sleep well?" Hermione asked.

"Mhm. Sorry about... that." Quinn said, referring to the fact that she had cuddled up to Hermione. Hermione just shrugged and sat up. She brushed her fingers through her hair, knowing well that it was such a tangled mess right now.

There was a knock on Hermione's door, followed by, "Girls? Breakfast is ready."

Hermione got to her feet and looked at herself in the mirror. Too late to care about her appearance now. Quinn had already seen her like this. She ran her brush through her hair and looked over at Quinn, who was still sitting on the bed looking rather uncertain.

"Come on. Let's eat." Quinn nodded and followed Hermione out of the room.

Breakfast was rather awkward as Hermione and Quinn tried to avoid looking at each other. Hermione's mother kept going on about how nice it was that Hermione was making friends at school and she was glad to finally meet one. Hermione looked over at Quinn and quickly looked away when her eyes met Quinn's. It was quite clear that _friends_ wasn't really the right term for them. But that begged the question – if not friends, what were they?

When they finally managed to make it back upstairs, neither knew how to approach the topic. Hermione decided to go take a shower, and Quinn watched her go, not quite sure what to do with herself. It was awkward with her there and awkward with her gone. She laid back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. She absently ran her hands over her stomach as she thought about the best way to talk to Hermione about it. _But what if Hermione didn't want her? _Quinn sighed and closed her eyes, raising her hands up above her head.

When Hermione came out of the bathroom, she thought maybe Quinn was asleep. But then Quinn looked up at her and no, she wasn't asleep. Just had her eyes closed. She could see some of Quinn's stomach, where her shirt had raised up, and she had to stop the thoughts that came with it. She opened her mouth to say something, but then thought better of it and closed it again. Instead, she came out with, "Bathroom's open if you want to shower."

"I don't have any clothes to change into." Quinn answered, looking back up at the ceiling.

"You could wear some of mine. I-I mean.. if you want to, that is." Hermione answered, chewing on her lip.

"If you don't mind..." Quinn said, looking up at Hermione. Hermione shook her head and gestured to her closet.

"Anything you like," Hermione told her and sat down at her desk as Quinn got up to inspect the clothes in the closet. She watched as Quinn finally decided on something – Hermione wondered if Quinn knew that was her favorite shirt – and then went into the bathroom. Hermione followed her in, showing her where everything was before heading back into her room. She looked around, wondering what she should do next. Everything she had thought about saying to Quinn when in the shower had just completely alluded her when she saw Quinn laying out on her bed like that. She sighed. Maybe if she wrote it down.

She sat down at her desk, pulling out a quill and ink. As much as she liked mechanical pencils and ballpoint pens, she really preferred her quills. They made her think of Hogwarts. They made her think of her friends. The words came easy to her as she scratched them out on the parchment. She looked over it several times, making sure everything was worded the way she wanted. When Quinn finally walked out, Hermione smiled up at her. Quinn came toward her, looking at the quill.

"What is that?" she asked.

"Oh, this?" Hermione asked, holding up the quill. She continued when Quinn nodded, "It's just a quill. For writing. I just dip it in the ink and write. See?"

"I've seen those before, I think. In movies. I've never used one before, though. Is it hard?" Quinn asked.

"No, not really. Just takes a little getting used to." Hermione explained. She looked down at the paper and then back up at Quinn. She bit her lip as she looked back and forth between the two. She wasn't sure she'd actually be able to say the words she'd written. She could just tell Quinn to read it...

"I wrote something. For you, I mean." Hermione said, holding out the paper.

"Oh, let's see it!" Quinn smiled and took the paper from Hermione. Her smile didn't hold as she read through what Hermione had written. She became focused as she worried her lip between her teeth, and Hermione decided that it was cute when Quinn did it. Quinn looked back at Hermione once she finished.

"Well?" Hermione asked, her voice shaky.

"Is this how you really feel?" Quinn asked. Hermione nodded and Quinn took a deep breath as she looked over the paper once again. She felt both giddy and nervous at the thought that Hermione Granger actually liked her. Hermione Granger liked Quinn Fabray.

"Well. Good. Because I like you, too." Quinn told her, and Hermione couldn't help the grin that broke out across her face.

"So where does this leave us, then?" Hermione asked. Quinn hummed as she went to sit on Hermione's bed. Hermione set her quill down and went to sit next to Quinn.

"We could always count last night as a first date," Quinn said, nudging Hermione's shoulder with her own.

"If that's the case, shouldn't you have kissed me at my door?" Hermione teased, nudging Quinn back. Quinn looked startled for a moment as she thought about it. Was that what Hermione had been hoping for?

"Ah, well, someone invited me in. The kiss at the door would have been a goodnight, if I had left. But I'm still here, you see." Quinn grinned.

"Hmmm. Perhaps you should go, then..." Hermione said, laughing as she looked over at Quinn. Yep. She so wanted Quinn to kiss her.

"Or.. I could just..." Quinn whispered as she leaned in close to Hermione, closing her eyes as she pressed her lips against Hermione's. Hermione's lips parted willingly beneath hers, and Quinn reached up, stroking Hermione's cheek as she kissed her. She pulled back slightly and watched Hermione's eyes flutter open as she said, "...do that."

"Can we do that again?" Hermione asked and Quinn grinned as she went in for a second kiss.


End file.
